Injured RB Thigpen to return against Utah

LOS ANGELES -- Damien Thigpen didn't hesitate. After 10 months of rehabbing and waiting and rehabbing and waiting, the fifth-year senior running back could barely wait to answer a question about his potential return to action next week against Utah.

"It’s not potential," he said, cracking a smile. "I’m coming back for the game. I’ll be in the lineup. I’ll be there."

That eagerness has been there since the beginning of fall camp in August, when Thigpen said he was confident enough in his knee to play. But UCLA's coaches quickly pumped the brakes on an August return, choosing, despite his best wishes, not to rush Thigpen back from the ACL tear he suffered against USC last November.

This time around though, both player and coaches are finally on the same page.

"He’s coming back for Utah," Mora said of Thigpen. "It’s a definite. I can’t tell you how many snaps he’s going to play; it would be great to get him a few carries. It’s not that you want to get your running backs hit, but coming off an injury like his, it’s important that you take some shots. I think you build confidence when you do. We need to get him a couple of carries at least, and we will."

Three weeks ago, Mora said, he was still worried whenever Thigpen made a cut or took a hit in practice. But since then, Mora has seen a distinct change in Thigpen's body language that soothed any lingering concerns about bringing him back into the fold.

"When you watch him out here, he’s very confident," Mora said. "He looks like he’s going full speed through his cuts. He doesn’t tiptoe through the hole – he’s hitting it. He doesn’t look hesitant at all. He’s got a high degree of confidence, which gives me a high degree of confidence."

While concerns about his health have subsided with Mora's clearance, there's still a question of how Thigpen will actually fit into UCLA's offensive gameplan, which, with him in the fold, would include five capable running backs. The only limit Mora put on his newly healthy back is that he won’t be returning kicks – not yet, at least.

Mora insinuated last Saturday that UCLA’s offense would have to get more creative in order to involve Thigpen and Steven Manfro, both of which are capable of lining up wide as a receiver.

But with his debut still a week away, Thigpen, who had 473 total yards and four touchdowns last season, doesn’t care much about where he’ll be playing. He’s just happy he’ll be playing at all.

“It’s been a long road,” Thigpen said. “I’ve been through a lot, so I’m just really excited to be back.”

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